2013 sports year in review

By Daily Telegram staff

Tuesday

Dec 31, 2013 at 12:30 PM

Lenawee County teams and athletes posted another memorable year in 2013.

The year was highlighted by championship runs, with Hudson wrestling rolling to its fifth straight team state title and Tecumseh softball catching fire at the right time to capture the state crown. Clinton football used its high-octane offense to reach the state championship game at Ford Field and finished as state runner-up. Not to mention numerous other conference and district championships claimed by area high schools.

Local colleges experienced much success, too. The Adrian College men's hockey, baseball and both lacrosse teams returned to their respective national tournaments, while the Siena Heights University women's basketball squad made its first-ever nationals appearance.

Here is a month-by-month look at notable sports stories from 2013.

JANUARY— Adrian College men's hockey defeats NCAA Division I opponent Alabama-Huntsville.— Madison girls basketball extends its Tri-County Conference win streak to 31 games.— Hudson duo Cole Weaver and Zach Rieger win Most Valuable Wrestler honors at the Lenawee County All-Star Wrestling Tournament. Addison's Matt Seiser is named Coach of the Year.— Pat Connors and Charlie Evans become the first inductees in the new Lenawee County Wrestling Hall of Fame.

FEBRUARY— Adrian College men's hockey wins its sixth consecutive Midwest Collegiate Hockey Association regular-season championship.— Madison girls basketball wins its second straight TCC championship.— Hudson, Tecumseh and Sand Creek wrestling advance to the team state tournament. The county has three teams reach states for the first time. Sand Creek makes its first-ever appearance in Battle Creek.— Adrian High School honors the 1963 Class A state runner-up boys basketball team.— Onsted girls basketball wins its third straight Lenawee County Athletic Association championship.— Madison and Clinton boys basketball share the TCC title.— Adrian College women's hockey goaltender Brittany Zeches receives the Northern Collegiate Hockey Association Player of the Year award and is named a finalist for the Laura Hurd Award for the top player in NCAA Division III.— Siena Heights women's basketball advances to the NAIA Division II national tournament for the first time.— Hudson wrestling wins its fifth straight team state championship, matching the state record for consecutive titles.

MARCH— Forty individual wrestlers from the county advance to the individual state finals at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Hudson's Weaver, JD Waters and Roddy Hamdan, Adrian's Joe Garcia and Addison's Jared Bruner win state championships.— Clinton boys and Tecumseh girls bowling teams reach the state quarterfinals.— Madison and Blissfield girls basketball teams win district championships. Madison advances to the regional final and nearly knocks off eventual Class C state champion Manchester.— Siena Heights track and field standouts Lenzey Stidham (pole vault) and Doug Dawson (400-meter dash) win NAIA national championships.— Adrian College men's hockey wins the MCHA Harris Cup and advances to the NCAA Division III national tournament. Zach Graham repeats as MCHA Player of the Year, while Ron Fogarty repeats as Coach of the Year.— Tecumseh bowler Jordan Richard wins her second straight individual state championship.— Adrian, Lenawee Christian and Clinton boys basketball teams win district championships. Clinton and Lenawee Christian advance to regional finals.— Adrian swimmer Ian Moran finishes sixth in the 100-yard backstroke at the Division 3 state finals. Adrian finishes 19th in the team standings, and Tecumseh places 26th.— The Adrian College ACHA Division III men's hockey team wins its second straight national championship.— Addison boys basketball player Luke Meyer is named All-State by the Associated Press.

APRIL— Siena Heights women's lacrosse coach Cindy Hill is named Wolverine-Hoosier Athletic Conference Coach of the Year.— Morenci native and former Adrian College player Adam Schiermyer is named Blissfield football coach.— Britton native Duane Below is designated for assignment by the Detroit Tigers and claimed off waivers by the Miami Marlins.— Clinton softball stretches its TCC win streak to 57 games — the longest win streak in conference history for any sport.

MAY— Adrian College men's and women's lacrosse win the inaugural Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association championships. Both teams later earn their first NCAA Division III national tournament win. Cody Kilcoyne and Brandon MacDonald sweep the MIAA Most Valuable Player awards on the men's side, while Stacy Birlson of the women's team is named league Offensive MVP.— Madison girls track and field extends is TCC dual win streak to 52, which is the second longest win streak in league history for any sport.— Clinton boys golf wins the county team championship. Adrian's Matt Marok is the county medalist.— Adrian College baseball wins its fourth straight MIAA championship and clinches its sixth consecutive NCAA Division III tournament berth.— The Tecumseh baseball and softball teams sweep the Southeastern Conference White Division championships.— Madison and Sand Creek girls track and field teams both win regional championships.— Britton Deerfield baseball wins its first TCC championship since 2004.— Below is recalled by the Miami Marlins from Triple-A New Orleans.— Tecumseh boys lacrosse wins the SEC White championship and sets the state record for goals in a season.— Onsted girls track and field wins the LCAA championship.— Madison and Sand Creek track and field split the TCC championship. The Clinton boys earn a share of the league title.— Clinton softball wins its sixth consecutive TCC championship.— Clinton boys golf claims the TCC title.— Sand Creek girls track and field repeats as Michigan Interscholastic Track Coaches Association Division 4 state champions.— Adrian's Josh Perez and Sand Creek's Natalie Perry earn top honors at the 50th annual Daily Telegram Individual Invitational. Sand Creek's Mark Carlton and Clinton's Scott McNitt are named Coaches of the Year.— Onsted track and field standout Kelsey Ross chooses to continue her career at Central Michigan University.— Addison softball player Erika Underwood hits 17 home runs — second most for a season in state history.

JUNE— Clinton softball and baseball, Tecumseh softball and baseball, Sand Creek baseball and Morenci softball each win district championships.— Addison's Luke Meyer (high jump) and Sand Creek's Elizabeth Herriman (shot put) win Division 4 track and field state championships. Madison's Ashley Bussing wins the discus state title in Division 3.— Tecumseh softball embarks on a memorable run to its third Division 2 state championship in the last seven seasons. The unranked Indians beat No. 1-ranked Stevensville Lakeshore in the quarterfinals, No. 2 Livonia Ladywood in the semifinals and No. 7 Saginaw Swan Valley in the final.— Hudson's Zach Rieger and Tecumseh's John Terry play in the Michigan High School Football Coaches Association East-West All-Star Game at Grand Valley State University.— Monroe County sweeps Lenawee County in the fourth annual Border Clash All-Star basketball games at Siena Heights.— Greg Biffle wins the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Quicken Loans 400 at Michigan International Speedway.

JULY— The Blissfield Big League baseball team wins the state championship.— Seven county softball players compete in the Michigan High School Softball Coaches Association All-Star Games at Michigan State University: Tecumseh's Kelsey Rendell, Kylie Hill and Emily Maves; Madison's Ralena Anderson; Morenci's Hannah Jeffers and Taylor Schisler; and Clinton's Keely Quiring.— Tecumseh baseball standout Jacob Britt plays in the Michigan High School Baseball Coaches Association East-West All-Star Classic at Comerica Park.— Britton celebrates the 50th anniversary of its back-to-back boys basketball state championships.— Adrian American Legion Post 275 baseball wins district and zone championships to advance to the state tournament.

AUGUST— Hudson American Legion Post 180 baseball wins the Class A state championship.— Britt, who plays for the Adrian Post 275 baseball team, is named American Legion Department of Michigan Player of the Year.— Addison announces the first class of its new athletics Hall of Fame.— Joey Logano wins the Sprint Cup Series Pure Michigan 400 at MIS.— Siena Heights men's basketball adds former Adrian and Tecumseh boys coach Marc Comstock and Britton Deerfield girls coach Craig Tanis to its coaching staff.— Tecumseh girls and Adrian boys cross country teams win at the County Preview.

OCTOBER— Siena Heights football enters the NAIA national rankings for the first time in program history.— Weaver commits to the Indiana University wrestling team.— The county produces five girls golf state qualifiers: Tecumseh's Ashley Barth and Paige Rupley; Adrian's Ashley Rincon; Madison's Nicole Olden; and Onsted's Karah Slater.— The Adrian boys and Tecumseh girls cross country teams win county team championships. Adrian's Collin Kemner and Blissfield's Keelie Cairo win individual county titles.— Madison sweeps the TCC cross country championships.— Clinton football finishes its second consecutive undefeated regular season and clinches its second straight TCC title. The Redskins set the TCC scoring record at more than 50 points per league game.— Madison volleyball wins its first county championship.— Hudson football finishes in a three-way tie for the LCAA championship.— Lenawee Christian football breaks the school record for wins.— Sand Creek girls and boys cross country teams win regional championships. The Britton Deerfield girls and boys and the Hudson boys teams also qualify for the state meet.— Five county football teams qualify for the playoffs: Clinton, Hudson, Tecumseh, Lenawee Christian and Britton Deerfield.

NOVEMBER— Britton Deerfield football upsets Hudson in the first round of the playoffs.— Sand Creek cross country runner Aaron Peters earns All-State honors at the state finals. The Sand Creek boys finish 16th, the Hudson boys 21st, the Britton Deerfield boys 23rd, the Britton Deerfield girls 20th and the Sand Creek girls 21st.— Clinton, Madison and Lenawee Christian volleyball teams win district championships. Madison advances to the regional final.— Meyer signs with the Central Michigan University men's basketball team.— Adrian College women's soccer star Sam Barker is named MIAA MVP for the second time.— Adrian College football linebacker Deontae Bridgeman is named MIAA Defensive MVP.— Adrian girls swimmer Jennifer Wagley repeats as Division 3 state champion in the 100-yard butterfly. Adrian finishes a school-record fifth in the team standings, while Tecumseh places 25th.— Clinton football advances to the Division 6 state championship game at Ford Field in Detroit. The Redskins set the school record for wins and earn their first-ever trip to the state final. Their 618 total points shatters the county record.— Siena Heights football defensive back DeShawn Gilbert is named Mid-States Football Association Mideast League Co-Defensive Player of the Year.— Lenawee Christian's Brad Harrah and Tecumseh's Preston Pelham are named All-State in football by the Associated Press. Pelham receives the second-most votes in Division 3-4.— Siena Heights men's basketball reclaims the Milk Jug by beating cross-town rival Adrian College. The Siena Heights women beat Adrian for the fifth straight year.

DECEMBER— Onsted native and Grand Valley State University volleyball player Abby Aiken is named Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Player of the Year and NCAA Division II Midwest Region Player of the Year.— Adrian baseball pitcher Matt Clark commits to Michigan State University.— Wagley chooses to continue her swimming career at the University of Michigan.— Adrian College men's hockey climbs to No. 2 in the NCAA Division III rankings during the regular season for the first time in program history.— Siena Heights football tight end Donovan Campbell earns NAIA All-America first team honors, becoming the first All-American in program history. Gilbert is named to the All-America second team.

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